Parents of children with disabilities often say their kids can feel left out of typical kid activities. That’s not the case with Mary Free Bed’s Halloween Heroes parade.
Each young participant picked what he or she wanted to be for Halloween, and a team of volunteers worked together to bring those ideas to life. The kids get to keep their customized, transportable costumes to wear at school or around their neighborhood.
The parade included 28 current and former Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital pediatric patients in costumes that expertly incorporate manual and power wheelchairs.
The lineup included the Polar Express, complete with coal car; a bath tub that makes real bubbles, a tank with a moving turret, a twinkling pink and purple carriage fit for a princess and a green Lamborghini.
“Halloween Heroes has uplifted our spirits and given us something to look forward to,” said Brandi Secrist, whose son, Logan, 5, was dressed as a king with a crown and robe, sitting on a red and gold throne. Logan was born prematurely at 27 weeks of gestation.
Amanda Engstrom says her son, Alex, who has cerebral palsy, was excited about being a pilot in his lighted blue airplane. “It’s so important to bring awareness to all abilities,” Engstrom said. “Alex may look different, but he’s just like any other kid.”
Every parade participant has a unique story, including six-year-old Olivia Hanson. She developed a rare
neuro-immune disorder on Labor Day that left her unable to even lift her head. She couldn’t wait to be a mermaid in her satin-lined clam shell. Divya Harman, 5, is in Grand Rapids from India, thanks to the humanitarian organization Healing the Children.
Her surgery to treat cerebral palsy was successful, and she’s re-learning how to walk. She rode in style in her outrigger with sail as the Disney character Moana.
It’s a toss-up who enjoys Halloween Heroes more: the children or the adults who make the costumes. For weeks, Mary Free Bed staff and community volunteers created the rolling works-of-art for the third annual event with university engineering students, employees of a local construction company and police officers.
This year includes a special “Boo Award” presented by Rowan Geenen in honor of her twin sister, Willow, who passed away in August.
Halloween Heroes is the brainchild of Jane and Chris Weatherford, whose son, Cam, has cerebral palsy.
Each year they incorporated his wheelchair into a Halloween costume. When they saw the joy it brought, they wanted other children and their parents to experience that, too.
